Lobster boat a total loss after fire off of Damon's Point

A lobster boat fully engulfed in flames broke from its mooring on the North River late Sunday night, requiring a strategic attack by Marshfield and Scituate firefighters and harbormaster’s office that took more than six hours.

By Jessica Trufant

The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA

By Jessica Trufant

Posted Sep. 9, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Sep 9, 2013 at 9:19 AM

By Jessica Trufant

Posted Sep. 9, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Sep 9, 2013 at 9:19 AM

MARSHFIELD

» Social News

A lobster boat fully engulfed in flames broke from its mooring on the North River late Sunday night, requiring a strategic attack by Marshfield and Scituate firefighters and harbormaster’s office that took more than six hours.

It was the second fire on board the 42-foot boat, the Aries II, in just more than a week, Marshfield Harbormaster Mike DiMeo said Monday. While the 20-year-old boat sustained minor damage during the Sept. 2 fire, DiMeo said Monday it is a total loss.

“The boat is down to the hull. There’s nothing left to it,” he said.

DiMeo said reports of a boat on fire off of Damon’s Point came in around 11:15 p.m. Sunday night.

Scituate and Marshfield Harbormasters and firefighters found the commercial boat engulfed in flames, which had melted the boat’s mooring line. No one was on board the boat at the time.

DiMeo said responders started an attack on the flames while they worked to push the boat off the clam flat so it would not sink. The harbormasters towed the boat to the eastern side of the jetty, and firefighters were able to continue their attack from land.

“It was a great collaborative effort by both towns, and it worked out well,” DiMeo said.

Despite the quick response, DiMeo said it took more than six hours to completely extinguish the flames.

“We got lucky with the incoming tide and little wind, but the fire was tough to put out,” he said.

DiMeo said the towns used an absorbent boom to ensure no oil spilled into the water from the boat. He said the boom was included in a hazardous materials equipment trailer the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection provides to coastal communities.

The state fire marshal’s office joined firefighters on scene Monday, DiMeo said, and a crane was called in to lift the boat out of the water.

DiMeo said the boat would then be brought to a secure lot for further investigation into the cause of the fire.

The Sept. 2 fire was caused when insulation around the exhaust pipe ignited, DiMeo said. The boat sustained “very minimal damage” during that blaze, he said, and it was operational within a few days.